A secret base in Africa?

With the little information that's leaking out about US forces operating in Africa one thing has struck me.

There MUST be another base in Africa from which US forces are flowing from.

Think about it like this.  Camp Lemonnier has all the makings of being a logistics hub.  Last Google Earth photo that I saw showed:

5 CH-53E.

4 C-130.  (I believe that two of those visible must be MC-130J's because of the darker shade of gray applied to them)

6 F-15E.


And that's just on the "military" side of the base.  That my friends is a logistics hub with a force of F-15E's to provide rapid aerial response for units out in the boonies that need air support.

My guess when it comes to where this "secret" base is located would be Kenya.  The government is rather stable, its English speaking, has port facilities and has been cooperating with the British and US governments in the fight against terrorist on the continent. 

You can also bet that with Special Forces operating there (and they have a huge contingent in country), that MH-60's or even CV-22's should be visible, but they aren't.

Kenya has to be it.  Time to take a look at Google Earth again.

UPDATE*

Will left this comment and I think its so spot on that it needs to be included in this piece so that all eyes can get on it...

 I gotcha covered Sol. Camp Simba, no bullshit, a naval port in Kenya. And some extra tidbits on the topic: http://www.esquire.com/features/africacommand0707 - It's from 2007, if you can stomach it, but there's six pages of intel to sift through.

Ghana also came up in 2008. Big, bold letters: "There is already a US military presence in Ghana." That's here: http://crossedcrocodiles.wordpress.com/2008/02/18/africom-us-military-bases-and-ghana/

From 2011, Q3's answer listed a new AF base in Ethopia: http://csis.org/publication/kenyas-military-operation-somalia

Manda Bay, Kenya also came up here: http://www.geopoliticalmonitor.com/us-military-bases-a-global-footprint-1/

Africa is the last unstomped land for the U.S. Military. It's time to expand, and we're getting right on that with the draw-down of Afghanistan. I just don't think anyone saw what Iran pulled out of it's ass, nor have they considered what could come of that. Nuclear war is in the cards, and has to be taken more seriously.

Hmmm.  Its starting to make sense.  I think I'm seeing a pattern in US operations and AFRICOM is beyond being just a salvation army with guns.  They're taking the fight to the terrorist and using conventional forces as the shield behind the real activity that's going on.


Conventionals get the shit jobs of guarding facilities, handing out food to local populations and generally waving the flag for all to see.


SOCOM gets to have the fun of conducting raids and have a 2 month stint in country count as an actual deployment.


Even if we draw down our forces in Afghanistan to one Brigade this year it will actually mean nothing.


The new Battle Ground is AFRICA.  Welcome to the future.

US Marines are fighting in Africa...

They slipped this one past me.

Marine Forces Europe touts the training mission that its engaged in with the Georgian military and training exercises with our NATO allies.

What they've been less forthcoming about is the fact that Marines are involved in the fighting in Africa.

KONY 2012 supporters should be pleased.  Force Recon is training Ugandan soldiers.  Check out this article from Shadow Spear.  Read the whole thing but this stood out to me....

“We are answering a stated need by our African partners,” said Lt. Col. David L. Morgan, commander of SPMAGTF-12 and 4th Force Reconnaissance Company. “Our mission in Uganda is yet another example of what this versatile force can do.”

The task force has dispatched teams across a wide swath of Africa over the course of their six month deployment in support of Marine Forces Africa, sending anywhere from five to 50 Marines into partner nations for days to months at a time. The unit is among the first of its kind and the mission in Uganda is one of its last.

So we have a Special Purpose MAGTF setup thats sending units into Africa.

Amazing.

What isn't making sense is how the Marine Corps is approaching this.  The Georgian military has conventional US Marines doing the training.  In Africa, its being done by Force Recon.  A reserve unit at that.

What gives?  Are we doing a SOCOM light and are we going to start tasking Force Recon with training or is it like I suspect.

US Marines are engaged in the fighting in Africa.

It shouldn't be surprising.  The stories have been leaking out for months but I didn't want to go ahead with saying anything because I didn't want to be called a loon.  But with Australian SAS, SEALs, a HUGE number of Special Forces and Air Force Special Ops (Para-rescue, Combat Controllers and Weathermen...along with a couple of MC-130's that I saw at Djubouti) its beyond apparent that the US is involved in the fight against terrorist on that continent.

The problem is this WILL turn into a 3 way affair.  The US and its allies on one side.  Terrorist on another and then China on the other.

More to come on SPMAGTF-12.

Special Ops fanboys are gonna wet themselves over these pics....

Thames River Police Boarding Teams in Olympics Security Exercise, London

Members of the Metropolitan Thames River Police are pictured practicing boarding techniques in a Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) during an Olympic Games security exercise.
The Thames River Police lead maritime security exercise in conjunction with the Royal Marines was carried out on the river Thames in preparation for the Olympic 2012 Games. Photographer: POA(Phot) Terry Seward

Pic of the Day....

U.S. Army Pfc. Cristian Franco, assigned to 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment, carries an M240B machine gun while descending a mountain path during a security patrol overlooking the Pesho Ghar valley and the Enzarkay Pass in Paktya province, Afghanistan, on March 2, 2012. DoD photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Epperson, U.S. Army. (Released)

Porcupine Prototype 155-mm self-propelled howitzer

Read about this unusual wheeled artillery vehicle over at Military-Today.com.

In the well deck...(11th MEU at sea)

All photos by Seaman Dominique Pineiro

A Marine drives an amphibious assault vehicle down a ramp in the well deck of the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD 18). New Orleans and embarked Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

A Marine guides an amphibious assault vehicle in the well deck of the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD 18). New Orleans and embarked Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

A Marine guides an amphibious assault vehicle in the well deck of the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD 18). New Orleans and embarked Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

T-90MS

Hmmm.  That remote weapon station sure looks "borrowed" and I can't help but wonder about the optics systems.  Almost as interesting as the T-90MS is the Terminator.  I would label it an Infantry Support Vehicle (ISV).  Twin 30mm cannons against infantry in an urban setting must be devastating.  But the high tech trend for Armored Vehicles does have a silver lining for the Infantry in defense.  If your designated marksman can get hits on the optics then you wouldn't have the vaunted hard or mobility kill but you would in essence degrade a fighting vehicle greatly.

I wonder if anyone's School of Infantry has tested the concept.

Undignified bullshit.

Via Marine Times.

Read there take on the story but this is mine.

This is undignified bullshit.

You're a MARINE GENERAL by God!

If this is what it takes to win hearts and minds then its just not worth it.

Everyone asks what would Jack Bauer do?

I ask, what would Chesty Puller say?

It would start with What the fuck are you doing General, end with have you lost your fucking mind General and conclude with Chesty getting time in the Brig for punching a fellow officer.

My Marine Corps has lost its way!!!!!!!!!!

Meanwhile a Chinese General (Army) is commenting on the Piracy issue.  Via CDR Salamander....Read it over at his place.  I'm too depressed to add it here.

Just a note.  This is what happens when you try to be HIP instead of striving to be HARD CORPS!

Phantom Eye taxi test vid...

Massive hat tip to Ed for the vid.

AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) Tests...

An F/A-18F Super Hornet assigned to the Salty Dogs of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23 conducts a captive carry flight test of an AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. (U.S. Navy photo by Greg L. Davis/Released)

An F/A-18F Super Hornet assigned to the Salty Dogs of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23 conducts a captive carry flight test of an AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. (U.S. Navy photo by Greg L. Davis/Released)

An F/A-18F Super Hornet assigned to the Salty Dogs of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23 conducts a captive carry flight test of an AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. (U.S. Navy photo by Greg L. Davis/Released

31st MEU completes long distance raid covering 1,100 miles

Leadership as a scape goat.

The common wisdom is that there must have been breakdown in leadership because the Soldier that committed the murders a couple of days ago was not detected sooner.


What a load of bullshit!

Answer this for me.

You have Soldier "A" that is the company joker.  Nothing ever gets him down and he laughs at the drop of a hat, lifts everyone up when they're down etc...  You're down range for a  couple of months and your unit has seen action.  He still performs at a decent level, but he no longer jokes anymore.  He's alot more serious and he doesn't suffer foolishness.

Does that mean that the Soldier is about to snap or does it mean that he's maturing?

And what about a Soldier that extremely serious about EVERYTHING, yet after a couple of months down range, he finds humor in things.

Is that a Soldier that's about to snap? 

And that's my point.  There is absolutely no way to know what will push someone over the edge.  Or when they'll go over the edge.

Blaming the unit leadership for this is simply making them a scape goat.

We're better than that.

Blame the Soldier that committed the act.  No one else.

Information Dissemination and Counter Insurgency.

The G-man asks some very important questions over at his place.  Read it here, but first read the primer over at Small Wars Journal.


Galrahn asks these questions....

How many different ways are we fooling ourselves? Is counterinsurgency doctrine as fragile as an applied military doctrine as that article suggests? How is it possible counterinsurgency is considered a practical military approach for theater campaign warfighting if as an applied military doctrine in a real war, it can be undone so easily?

The answer is simple.

Counter Insurgency as the US military practices it was designed to squash an internal uprising against a DEMOCRATICALLY elected government by COMMUNIST forces.

It was/is not designed to battle one side or the other in a CIVIL WAR between two factions.

Specifically it was not designed to battle a civil war based on RELIGIOUS IDEOLOGY!

Think about the various commanders that have been in charge of the war effort in Afghanistan.  David Petraeus and Stanley McChrystal....

What do they have in common?

They're both of the Special Ops Mafia.

They both believed that Raids against "high value targets" would win the war and that having conventional forces in country to support SOCOM and to rebuild that nation would have the one two punch of destroying opposition to the government and wining the hearts and minds of the Afghan people.

It shows a lack of understanding of the enemy we are fighting, the nature of the country in which we were fighting and over confidence in Special Operations.

It is my contention that we have seen the poorest example of Generalship in the history of our country.

The blame for this can be laid squarely at the feet of President's Bush and Obama.

Rummy led the charge by firing General Shinseki because he actually told the truth to Congress and then promptly putting in place those that either believed his way of thinking or lacked the fortitude to vocally oppose him.

Obama did the same by putting the entire military on notice by selecting an aviator for Commandant.  By doing this he told the services that he did not respect established ways of doing business and would only put those that "he could work with in power."

If you remember the goat fuck that was the selection of the Commandant then you know this to be true.

Long story short.

The Generals lost this war because they lacked the courage to give real assessments of what was and wasn't possible when we went in.

Think about this.

1.  We invaded Afghanistan with a skeleton force.

2.  Before our objectives were achieved we switched to Iraq and that became the main effort.

3.  We invaded Iraq with a force that was WAAAAAAAY too small.

4.  Civilian meddling continued to limit attempts to get a handle on the situation (Rummy was a stubborn bastard...probably the worst SecDef in this nations history...yet Bush continued to support him).

5.  Civilian meddling allowed huge stock piles of weapons to fall into the hands of insurgents causing untold casualties because of this failure of leadership.

6.  Obama takes office and instead of decreasing the number of forces and plotting a way out of Afghanistan, does the exact opposite. He increases the forces there prolonging the war by years.

I could go on but the results are clear.

Historic failure at the White House through two administrations, historic failure at the Pentagon and across all the services...and historic failure by the American people to properly assess what our leaders were telling us.

Happy 71st birthday 3rd Battalion 1st Marines!

Sgt. Maj. Vincent Santiago, Battalion Landing Team 3/1 sergeant major, cuts a cake aboard USS New Orleans March 11 at a ceremony celebrating the 71st anniversary of 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines. The Camp Pendleton, Calif.,-based battalion – reinforced by mechanized and motorized attachments, reconnaissance and combat engineers – is the ground combat element for the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The unit is deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force. The group is providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Its kinda awesome to see High and Tight Haircuts making a comeback.


All these combat 'staches were making me think that we were going Army.  Now if we can only get the Commandant to get out of that Fly Boy haircut and get a Grunt Cut all might be right with the world.

Boarding Ladder Practice....

Ah man!  This sucks!  If you can do this well then you've got "total body conditioning"...

11th MEU Raid Force aboard the USS New Orleans.  Photos by Cpl Chad Pulliam.

Cpl. Justin Schoonover, 25, climbs a narrow ladder aboard USS New Orleans from a rigid hull inflatable boat here March 8. Schoonover, a Charlotte, N.C., native, serves with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit's maritime raid force. The unit is deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force. The group is providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Lance Cpl. Ethan E. Allen climbs aboard USS New Orleans from a rigid hull inflatable boat here Mar. 8. Allen, a Fort Madison, Iowa, native, serves with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit's maritime raid force. The unit is deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force. The group is providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Lance Cpl. Harland D. Shelton, 20, watches from a rigid hull inflatable boat as another Marine climbs aboard USS New Orleans here March 8. Shelton, a Indiahoma, Okla., native, serves with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit's maritime raid force. The unit is deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force. The group is providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Marines with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit's maritime raid force climb aboard USS New Orleans from rigid hull inflatable boats here Mar. 8. The unit is deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force. The group is providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Our hidden aviation past...

Who would think that hobbyist are probably one of the driving forces behind the preservation of US aviation history. 

Don't laugh because its true.

Do you know or remember anything about these projects?

X-24C?

Orion Space Battleship?

Gemini Para Glider?

Information on all these projects is sketchy because they were (at least in the case of the Space Bomber) top secret.  Others because they were obscure and were over shadowed by the different direction that was taken by the programs.

What's even more frustrating is telling the difference between fantasy projects and actual concepts that real engineers were working on.

During the 50's and 60's it seems that the talent pool and imagination of our citizenry was much greater than you find today.

More to come...

Rocket Attacks...

Terrorists in the Gaza Strip have fired more than 300 rockets since this Friday, striking major population centers in southern Israel. More than one million Israelis are under the threat of rocket fire.
Combat soldiers and emergency instructors of the Home Front Command spread throughout the country, explaining citizens how to act in case of rocket attacks.

Pictured above are soldiers of the Search and Rescue unit, explaining the workers of a local furniture store on how to stay safe in case of a rocket attack on their place of work.

The US public is so easily deceived its beyond funny.  Its pathetic.

While everyone is watching a madman in Afghanistan.  A madman that went on a shooting rampage, perhaps because of brain damage after one of his many tours, the debate is over whether we should pull out at an accelerated rate or if we should stay the course.

The answer to that is obvious.  The war part of this "conflict" was over with a long time ago.  The only thing NATO is doing now is nation building.  

In Afghanistan that's a fools errand.

The real story is what's happening in Israel.  The Palestinian's are launching a savage rocket attack.  The Israeli's are launching punitive air strikes.

Between the Arab Spring, Arab Winter, the War in Libya, the Civil War in Syria and now the battle between the Israeli's and Palestinian's....

We're in for a rough ride.

11th MEU and Assault Craft Unit 5 in action.

*Note*

There are a couple of units that deserve a bit more attention when talking about the MEU and how they conduct operations.  They're the Sea Bee's and Assault Craft Unit's.  I'll rectify that in the future.  But there is something else I'll be keeping an eye on.  Since I first saw the "extra" Marine Corps aircraft at Djibouti, I'm convinced that every MEU that deploys to this region is dropping off detachments there and the rest of the MEU is continuing on with its mission.  That's just speculation on my part but we'll see.

All photos by Petty Officer 1st Class David McKee

A landing craft air cushion assigned to Assault Craft Unit 5 departs the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD 8) with humvees and amphibious assault vehicles. LAV's.  Makin Island and embarked Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are deployed supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

A landing craft air cushion assigned to Assault Craft Unit 5 departs the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD 8) with humvees and amphibious assault vehicles LAV's.   Makin Island and embarked Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are deployed supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

A landing craft air cushion assigned to Assault Craft Unit 5 departs the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD 8) with an M1 A1 Abrams main battle tank. Makin Island and embarked Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are deployed supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

A landing craft air cushion assigned to Assault Craft Unit 5 departs the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD 8) with an M1 A1 Abrams main battle tank. Makin Island and embarked Marines assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are deployed supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Where are the USAF Special Ops CV-22's???

Remember the Libyan War?

Remember the rescue of the downed F-15 pilots by the Marine Corps' MEU flying MV-22's backed  up by CH-53's and escorted by AV-8B's?

I always assumed that USAF Combat Search and Rescue was stationed on land and that it would take them too long to get there.

I thought wrong.  Check this out from SLD.

First, the Libyan TRAP mission showed the ready now nature of joint basing of the AV-8 and MV-22s on the USS Kearsage.
Colonel Mark Desens, Commander 26th MEU:
When we learned that a F-15 crew had ejected east of Benghazi, we immediately focused our efforts on getting ready to rescue them.

The mission was given to us for two reasons: one, first and foremost, was the uncertain environment. We didn’t know what was going on on the ground with the pilot. The second is we were the most ready and had the most responsive assets, most notably, the MV-22. Backed up by CH-53s and Harriers, we had very potent reaction force in case we needed to fight to get the crew out or reinforce the recovery or crash site. As an aside, a recovery asset launching from land base — the next closest locations being Sigonella or Souda Bay — would have been four or more hours.

There were USAF HH-60G rescue helicopters embarked on the Ponce to give a CSAR capability with improved reaction times. However, you’re comparing 270 knots versus 140. It would have taken at least 45 minutes longer for a helicopter to get there. U.S. forces may well have not been the first to reach that pilot without the MV-22. Given the situation, that was not acceptable. The other thing is that for a helo, a direct flight path (to save time) to the pilot would have gone through Benghazi, a potential threat area at the time. The Osprey could chart a very different path, avoiding any potential air defense threats.

Again the speed and range of the Osprey coupled with the ability to have Marines on the ground to secure the perimeter was the key.

So USAF Combat Search and Rescue was forward deployed (aboard a Navy Amphib...very ironic considering all the talk about the contribution of the Gator Navy being irrelevant).

They just didn't have the tools to get the job done.  Correction.  They didn't have the tools on hand to get the job done.

I've wondered why we haven't seen the CV-22 used more often.  The MH-53J was rode HARD.  It seems as if the USAF is still in an evaluation period with their aircraft.

Either way, the USAF in general and SOCOM in particular has got to get this equipment into the fight in a big way.  If not then they need to give the aircraft to the Marine Corps.  We can use them if they won't.

Monday Mudballing....

Question.

The head of SOCOM has asked for more power to deploy his units world wide in the hunt for terrorist.  What he hasn't asked for is the removal of conventional forces from Afghanistan so that SOCOM can take over in that country.

Why is that?  Why hasn't SOCOM asked for a larger role in Afghanistan?

My theory is because they don't want to do the dirty work of training (well except for Special Forces) these forces.  Afghanistan is a classic counter insurgency mission that should be the sole responsibility of Special Operations forces.

The conventional forces should be out of there.  But they can't, because SOCOM only does raids now.  We have an entire branch of the military that does nothing but raids. 

That's unsat.

Its time for SOCOM to start pulling its weight.  Its time for it to stop leveraging off the conventional forces and to stand on its own.  Every where SOCOM goes it request conventional forces to "assist" it.

This really amounts to doing the work that SOCOM is now too good to do.

They establish a compound somewhere....you'll have conventional forces pulling guard duty.

They perform a protection detail...they'll be inside with the protectorate and you'll have conventional forces outside guarding vehicles and the perimeter.

They perform a rescue mission.  More than likely you'll have a conventional unit loaded to the bear ready to perform quick reaction force duties.

It goes on and on.

Time for the "rock stars" of the military world to start pulling there weight.  If not then how about they hand back in those Rolex watches, turn in those 1000 dollar smocks, stop buying boutique weapons that do the same damn thing that a normal weapon does and put that black budget under some sunlight so we can see exactly how much they're costing the taxpayer.

Want a startling fact?


The founder of Seal Team 6 bragged that his small unit had a budget larger than the entire Marine Corps.


With that in mind can we afford to have a branch thats the size of 3 Army Divisions that duplicates the US Army Ranger mission and only does raids?  Or is it time to think about eliminating duplication, slashing personnel in SOCOM instead of enlarging it and pushing all these units back to there parent service so that these SOCOM bubbas can get some adult supervision?

UPDATE:

THERE ARE REPORTS THAT THE SOLDIER THAT COMMITTED THE MURDERS IN AFGHANISTAN WAS GUARDING A SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMPOUND.